From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

Kadence Dumas’s monster 2:10 anchor leg led the Eastern girls to the No. 5 indoor sprint medley time in state history at a meet this weekend in Virginia Beach.

Dumas split 2:10.84 to bring Eastern home in 4:01.78, more than 1 ½ seconds ahead of second place at the Virgina Beach Nationals at the Virginia Beach Sports Center. Tallwood High of Virginia Beach was 2nd in 4:03.45.

Senior Johnay Stilley and junior Lomaria Tengbeh ran the opening 200s, giving freshman Natalie Dumas the stick in 5th place. Dumas split 57.20 – fastest of all the quarter-milers – to move Eastern into the lead, and her older sister put the race away.

Eastern’s time is No. 2 in South Jersey history, behind Willingboro’s 4:01.41 for 2nd place at the 2003 National Scholastic Championships at the Armory. It’s 5th-fastest in South Jersey history overall including indoor and outdoor marks and fastest since Lenape ran 4:01.07 at Greensboro (N.C.) Nationals in 2015.

The previous Camden County record was Haddonfield’s 4:03.93 at 2001 Landover (Md.) Nationals at Prince George’s Sports and Learning Center.

I’m not sure what the rules are regarding when the indoor season officially ends, but as far as I’m concerned, the track is indoors, they ran the time and it counts.

All-Time South Jersey Indoor Sprint Medley List
4:01.41 … Willingboro, 2003
4:01.78 … Eastern, 2023
4:03.93 … Haddonfield, 2001
4:04.27 … Cherokee, 2022
4:04.38 … Washington Twp., 2010
4:08.21 … Lenape, 2015
4:08.60 … Lenape, 2012
4:09.27 … Millville, 2008
4:10.01 … Willingboro, 2004
4:10.17 … Camden, 1995
4:10.18 … Willingboro, 2005
4:10.22 … Lenape, 2016
4:10.36 … Lenape, 2013
4:10.43 … Kingsway, 2013
4:10.51 … Lenape, 2007
4:11.02 … Lenape, 2006
4:11.19 … Woodrow Wilson, 2005
4:11.61 … Millville, 2009
4:11.66 … Willingboro, 2006
4:11.93 … Cherokee, 2012
4:11.94 … Kingsway, 2010
4:12.35 … Delsea, 2014
4:12.51 … Rancocas Valley, 2004
4:13.00 … Cherokee, 2013
4:13.0h … Lenape, 2008
4:13.11 … Winslow Twp., 2003
4:13.25 … Washington Twp., 2011
4:13.26 … Buena, 1999
4:13.33 … Camden, 2009
4:13.58 … Seneca, 2016
4:13.72 … Overberook, 2001
4:14.03 … Paul VI, 2020
4:14.17 … Woodrow Wilson, 2006
4:14.60 … Cherokee, 2010
4:14.49 … Haddonfield, 2017
4:14.70 … Washington Twp., 2010
4:14.74 … Washington Twp., 2005
4:14.74 … Rancocas Valley, 2017
4:14.84 … Egg Harbor Twp., 2015
4:14.90 … Millville, 2013

All-Time South Jersey Combined Sprint Medley List
3:59.6h … Willingboro, 2003
4:00.34 … Willingboro, 2006
4:00.71 … Willingboro, 2002
4:01.07 … Lenape, 2015
4:01.78 … Eastern, 2023 [i]
4:02.60 … Sterling, 2017
4:02.69 … Willingboro, 2004
4:02.89 … Woodrow Wilson, 2002
4:03.04 … Camden, 1995
4:03.42 … Millville, 2008
4:03.54 … Lenape, 2006
4:04.27 … Cherokee, 2022 [i]
4:04.38 … Washington Twp., 2010 [i]
4:04.44 … Millville, 2013
4:04.86 … Woodrow Wilson, 2009

All-Time New Jersey Indoor Sprint Medley List
3:57.19 … Columbia, 2014
3:58.46 … Union Catholic, 2019
4:00.33 … Neptune, 2011
4:01.41 … Willingboro, 2003
4:01.78 … Eastern, 2023
4:03.13 … Sparta, 2010
4:03.14 … Westwood, 2014
4:03.18 … Columbia, 2010
4:03.22 … Columbia, 2013
4:03.57 … Piscataway, 2006
4:03.69 … Pope John, 2007
4:03.85 … Hopewell Valley, 2005
4:03.93 … Haddonfield, 2001
4:04.27 … Cherokee, 2022
4:04.36 … Columbia, 1983
4:04.38 … Washington Twp., 2010
4:04.47 … Neptune, 2009
4:04.49 … Hunterdon Central, 2015
4:04.81 … Union Catholic, 2017
4:05.83 … Union Catholic, 2016
4:06.22 … Ramapo, 2019
4:07.07 … Pope John XXIII, 2019
4:07.87 … Southern Regional, 2007
4:07.95 … South Brunswick, 2011
4:07.98 … Immaculate Heart, 2010
4:08.17 … Sparta, 2013
4:08.18 … Middletown North, 2017
4:08.21 … Lenape, 2015
4:08.1h … Trenton, 2001
4:08.42 … Woodbridge, 2019
4:08.50 … Columbia, 2009
4:08.59 … Old Bridge, 2009
4:08.53 … Hunterdon Central, 2004
4:08.60 … Lenape, 2012
4:09.04 … Westwood, 2013
4:09.19 … Ramapo, 2013
4:09.21 … Pope John XXIII, 2013
4:09.27 … Millville, 2008
4:09.39 … Pope John XXIII, 2014
4:09.2h … Shabazz, 1986
4:09.60 … Pope John XXIII, 2018
4:09.70 … Neptune, 2010
4:09.89 … Ridgewood, 2020
4:09.96 … Southern Regional, 2009

All-Time New Jersey Combined Sprint Medley List
3:50.82 … Columbia, 2014
3:52.07 … Columbia, 2013
3:52.74 … Neptune, 2010
3:53.70 … Columbia, 2010
3:53.93 … Sparta, 2010
3:54.37 … Southern Regional, 2007
3:55.8h … Columbia, 1980
3:56.54 … Columbia, 2009
3:57.19 … Columbia, 2014 [i]
3:57.44 … Union Catholic, 2017
3:57.51 … Columbia, 2012
3:57.82 … Union Catholic, 2016
3:57.96 … Westfield, 2014
3:58.26 … Pope John XXIII, 2014
3:58.41 … Union Catholic, 2015
3:58.46 … Union Catholic, 2019 [i]
3:58.56 … Columbia, 1995
3:58.59 … Shabazz, 1986
3:59.6h … Willingboro, 2003
4:00.33 … Neptune, 2011 [i]
4:00.34 … Willingboro, 2006
4:00.71 … Willingboro, 2002
4:01.07 … Lenape, 2015
4:01.41 … Willingboro, 2003 [i]
4:01.52 … Pope John, 2008
4:01.78 … Eastern, 2023 [i]
4:01.80 … Ridgewood, 2022
4:01.91 … Woodbridge, 2018
4:01.92 … Sparta, 2012

One note about the outdoor sprint medley list. Willingboro’s 3:59.6 in 2003 came at its own invitational. The time is listed everywhere else as 3:59.0, but what happened is the Boro actually ran 3:59.6 and the woman at the finish line who recorded the time scribbled the “6” and it looked like a “0.” Meet management accepted the time as 3:59.0 even though I went back to the finish line and checked with the finish-line official to see what they had on their watch and they said 3:59.6. The time went out in all results as 3:59.0 and since it’s one of the fastest times in U.S. history it remains recorded that way. But as fast as Willingboro was that day, they weren’t that fast. They really did run 3:59.6.